ABOUT

So what do you actually do?

I teach in a school for children with Social Emotional and Mental Health issues (SEMH) which is extremely challenging but incredibly rewarding.

What has your career path been?

When I left university, I started off as a sports coach doing lunch time and after school clubs in schools. I enjoyed one of the schools I was working in so I asked the headteacher if I could do some work experience there and she agreed for me to cover someone's 2-week paternity leave. That 2 weeks turned into 5 months. I knew at this point that education was where I wanted to be. It was where my skills could be used best.

I became a learning support assistant for 3 years before I went on to train as a teacher. By this point, I knew what kind of school I wanted to teach in and it wasn't a mainstream school. I searched for alternative provisions that I could work in and I was fortunate to find the perfect school for me. It was a school for children with social, emotional and mental health needs. After visiting once, I knew it was just the place for me. I made the unusual decision of completing my Newly Qualified Teachers year in this school and i've been here ever since.

In the time i've been at this school, i've been appointed the Special Educational Needs Coordinator for the whole school. I'm very proud of what i've achieved in the last 4 years but I know it's just the beginning.

What is the best part of your job?

No day is the same.

It's also a privilege to go into work everyday knowing you are making a difference, particularly in the lives of young people who are vulnerable and disadvantaged. I very much see myself as a servant to my students and their families and take pride in being able to achieve positive outcomes.

Why do you do your job?

Because of my negative school experience.

I wasn't inspired by many of my teachers and it was the marginalisation and exclusion I experienced in school that prompted my decision to become a teacher.

I wanted to change the narrative for young people who had been written off or given little hope to succeed. Because there weren't many young black teachers to look up to and aspire to, I decided that I needed to become what I didn't have.

My best friend Aaron Collingwood-Williams was the first of my friends to become a teacher and I was inspired by how he could be funny, quirky and 'from the ends' and still have a huge impact in an environment where we are the minority.

He played a big part in my decision to go through with the decision to become a teacher and, 5 years on, he still inspires me because I watch his journey and i'm encouraged. He is now an assistant head teacher and it's only a matter of time until he is a headteacher.

One piece of advice for someone starting in your role?

Spend some time in an alternative provision. As teachers, we often forget that our duty is to educate the WHOLE young person and not just focus on the academic side of things. Teaching in an alternative provision allows you to see what the barriers for learning are i.e abuse and / or poverty.

Teaching is very much about relationship, particularly when it comes to vulnerable young people, so take your time to get to know your students as much as you can.

If you really want to have an in-depth understanding of the world of education, consider being a TA and / or a governor. The perspective you have of education can vary from the position you are in.

Check out Emmanuel’s socials below!

DAY IN THE LIFE

Since the birth of my daughter last July, my decisions, my routine, and my actions have been centred around her.

When my alarm goes off at 6:30 in the morning, I spend 5 minutes groaning because I can't believe it's time to get up. I have that airport feeling every day (that feeling you have when your flight is at 10:30am and you went to sleep at 5:30am that morning). This is what it's like having a new born baby.

I get up and I go downstairs to put the kettle on. One, for a cup of lemon water. Two, to make a bottle of milk for when my daughter wakes up. I spend 20 minutes doing a light home workout and then I get a shower, before getting ready to work. Last thing I do before leaving my house is give my wife and daughter a kiss. Then I look at them in envy as they lay there cuddling and sleeping.

I begin my 15 minute drive to work by playing a podcast, some music or an audio book i'm currently listening to. Somewhere along the journey, I start to thank God for the little things. I thank him for everything. When I get into work, I have a briefing with my colleagues and then I brief my class team along with preparing for my students to come in at 9:15.

Although the children's timetable for the majority of the week is the same, no day is actually the same. I prep myself and the class team for every possible start to the day. A hungry child, an angry child or even a tired child can change the course of your day drastically. It's always easier to try identify potential barriers to learning at the start of the day and address them as soon as you can.

Between 9:15 - 1:15, I do what all teachers do - teach! The subjects I teach vary from English, to Maths, to Science, to Citizenship.

At 1:15 I go for my "lunch break". I put it in quotation marks because a lunch break sounds more glamorous than it is in my school and probably for many teachers across the country. I'm often juggling a number of tasks whilst stuffing my face with my lunch but more recently i've learned to shut off and make the most of my lunch time.

Once lunch is over, I spend the majority of my afternoon in the secondary department and deal with issues related to my SENCO role. This varies from deescalating arguments in the corridor to arranging meetings with outside agencies. Again, no day is the same.

By 3pm all children across the school have left and both the primary and secondary departments have their debrief meetings. I try and attend both as my role as SENCO requires me to have insight on what's happening across the school. Once those meetings are done, I spend the next 2 and a half hours finishing off / starting tasks, sending emails or meeting with staff members.

From about 5pm the school is generally empty and i'm often one of a few people left in the school. This is often the best time of day because it's the most quiet and serene time of day. It's also the best time of day for productivity, particularly when it comes to more of the administration things i'm not able to deal with during the day.

I never used to stay "late late" at work but once my daughter was born I made a vow to create a healthy balance of work and family time. So after school I spend as long as I can (usually 6-6:30) doing what I need to do before I get home. Sometimes this is school related and sometimes it's personal stuff or things related to my charity. Nonetheless, once I leave work, I leave "work" there too. My wife has spent the whole day at home with my 4 month old baby and I can appreciate how difficult and depressing it must be to look after a baby all day during a lockdown.

I make my way home and often use my 15-20 minute drive as an opportunity to call a friend or a family member. This is also something i'm trying to work on: checking up on people and keeping contact with close ones. 

On my way home I may pick up a treat for my wife. It's usually a Galaxy chocolate because she has an addictive personality and will eat the same thing until she is sick of it. When I get home, I remind myself, just before I enter my keys into the door, that I can't let my long, stressful day, with minimal sleep, be the reason my wife and daughter get the worst version of me. As I enter my house, I have on a forced smile but it quickly changes into a genuine smile. A smile of happiness, pride and thankfulness.

My family are genuinely enough to make me happy. After washing my hands and changing my clothes, I sit next to my wife, pick up my daughter and spend the next few hours playing with her, watching TV or just catching up on the day. More often than not, my wife leaves me to go do many of the things she's not able to do during the day.

Once it hits 8/9 we start to prepare for my daughter's night routine. We feed her, we bathe her, we feed her again and put her to sleep. Just before we knock out me and my wife remind one another to say a prayer and it's another opportunity to be thankful for another day. We've made it home into our beds with a roof over our heads and food in our stomach's. We sleep, not a great sleep, a new kind of sleep. The kind of sleep parents all around the world have had to experience. Yes, THAT sleep.

My alarm goes off at 6:30 again the next day and we do it all over again.